Dallas
by danrdarrenc
Summary: Luke and Noah go to Dallas for a film festival. Luke seeks out Reid and makes a decision concerning his future.
1. Chapter 1

Luke Snyder was sitting at Java café waiting for his boyfriend, Noah Mayer to get off work. Despite working on little Indie-film projects, Noah had kept his job at the coffee house.

"Hi," Noah said, coming around the counter to the table where Luke sat and kissing him.

"Hi," Luke said. "When you called you said you had something to tell me."

"Yep. My new film was entered in a film festival and is nominated for an award," Noah said, grinning from ear to ear.

"Noah, that's wonderful!" Luke said, taking his hand and smiling. "Am I invited to this festival?"

"Of course you're invited. I can't do it without you."

"Great! When is it?"

"We leave tomorrow and should be gone for about a week. I hope that's okay," Noah said.

"Sounds good to me. Nothing much is going on at the Foundation these days anyway. And it will be good to get away from Oakdale for a while. My mom has been bugging me to no end. I'm out of the house for three years and she still feels the need that she has to talk to me a hundred times a day," Luke said.

"It's settled then."

"By the way, where is this festival?"

"Dallas," Noah said.

Luke's face fell, the smile now gone.

"What?" Noah asked, noticing the change in Luke's demeanor.

"Dallas? Dallas, Texas?"

"No. Dallas, France. Of course Dallas, Texas," Noah mocked.

"On second thought, maybe I'll stay here," Luke said, sipping his coffee.

"Why?"

"Think, Noah. Why wouldn't I want to go to Dallas?"

Noah stared at Luke for a few seconds and then it dawned on him. "Dr. Oliver?"

Luke clenched his teeth and nodded.

"Why does it matter? Dallas is a big city and we'll only be going to the festival. Unless something horrific happens and one of us needs to be taken to the hospital, we should have no trouble getting in and out of Dallas without seeing him."

"Yeah," Luke said. "Alright, I'll go home and start packing." He stood up and grabbed his bag.

"I have to get back to work anyway," Noah said, standing up too. "I'll see you at home in a couple hours."

Luke nodded. As he walked into the Olde Towne, his mind was racing. It had been three years since he had last seen Reid. During those three years, he had occasionally thought about the neurosurgeon he had once blackmailed and kidnapped and what his life might have been like if he'd given their relationship more of a chance. While he told himself that he was happy with Noah – and he was – Luke could never quite shake the feeling that he would have been truly and utterly happy with the older man. Being in different cities, in different states, Luke was able to convince himself that these thoughts were silly and pointless. But now that he was headed to Dallas, he could no longer ignore them. Therefore, as he made his way home, despite Noah's assurances that there would be no need to meet up with Reid Oliver, Luke knew in his heart that if he went Dallas, he was inevitably going to search out the doctor.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, Luke and Noah left Oakdale and landed in DFW, the Dallas airport. The got their luggage off the conveyor belt and headed out to their hotel. On their way, the taxi passed Parkland Hospital and Luke's whole body tensed. He had no idea if Dr. Oliver was on duty today, but the thought that he was the nearest to him he had been in three years made Luke's heart constrict and gave him knots in his stomach.

The last time he and Dr. Oliver had spoken to each other had not been a fun experience.

_Luke knocked on the door to Katie and Reid's apartment. It was a fervent knock, but it was also a reluctant one._

_The door opened and Luke was faced with Reid who smiled when he saw Luke._

"_Hi, Luke," Reid said. "Come in." Luke walked into the apartment._

"_Hi," Luke said, fists clenched._

"_To what do I owe this amazing pleasure?" Reid said, sauntering over and kissing him._

"_Mmm," Luke moaned, melting into the kiss and pulling Reid closer. But after a minute, he pulled away. "Reid," Luke mumbled, his eyes closed._

"_What?"_

"_We need to talk," Luke said, his hands enclosing Reid's. _

_Reid looked at Luke, a sadness in his eyes that told Luke he knew what the conversation was about._

_Luke led Reid to the couch and both men sat down. _

"_You're going back to Noah," Reid said, releasing Luke's hands._

"_Yes," Luke said. "He's the love of my life."_

"_Good for him," Reid said, standing up, walking to the fridge, and trying not to portray his shattered heart._

"_Please don't think that I don't love you, Reid," Luke said, standing up as well. "Because I do."_

"_Well, that's just grand. Glad to know I at least broke into the barrier in your heart that the Great Noah Mayer had built in it," Reid said, getting sarcastic to mask his hurt._

"_I'm sorry, Reid. When we started this, Noah was gone and I didn't know if he was coming back. But he did and he wants me back. I can't just give that up. I never meant to hurt you."_

"_Well, you didn't," Reid lied. "I knew this was a rebound for you. I had no expectations." Reid finished making himself a sandwich and started to eat._

_Luke looked at him sadly; he knew Reid was lying._

"_If that's all you have to say, you can leave now," Reid said, taking a huge bite of his sandwich._

_Luke gave Reid one last sad look and left the apartment._

Despite his assurances that he had had no expectations and was not hurt, Reid had left Oakdale and gone back to Dallas a week later.

And now, three years later, Luke was in Dallas, miles away from Dr. Oliver and it was unbearable.

Luke and Noah's taxi pulled into the driveway of the hotel and the two men checked in. They went on up to room 510 and unpacked.

Once they had put all their clothes, Luke plopped down on one of the chairs and turned on the TV.

"I have to go to the arena to register and sign-in," Noah said. "I should be back in a couple hours and then we can get something to eat? Will you be alright?"

"Yep. I promise I won't burn down the hotel," Luke said, smiling slightly, flipping through the channels.

Noah chuckled and left the room. As soon as Noah was gone, Luke turned off the TV and grabbed his jacket. Once outside, Luke hailed a taxi and made his way to Parkland Hospital. When the car stopped, Luke paid the driver and entered the building.

When he was in the lobby, Luke looked at the board for the neurology wing. Making a mental note that it was floor 12, Luke went to the elevator and pushed the number 12 when the doors had closed behind him. A few minutes later, the doors opened onto floor 12 and Luke took a deep breath and exited the elevator.


	3. Chapter 3

Once out of the elevator, Luke walked over to the nurses' station.

"Hi, can you tell me if Dr. Reid Oliver is working today?"

"Yes, he should be out of surgery in about a half an hour," the nurse said. "You may wait in the waiting room for him if you like. Can I take your name?"

"Luke Snyder. Thanks." Luke turned around and went to the waiting room.

As he was sitting, Luke looked around and thought how much the neurology floor looked liked the wing he and Reid had built together and Oakdale Memorial so many years ago.

_So this is where he came from_, Luke thought to himself. _No wonder he didn't like Memorial._

Luke sat watching the other people in the waiting room. There were only three people – a couple and a lone man – but they all looked tired and anxious and worried and harried at the same time, waiting for news of their loved ones. He wondered how many of those surrounding him had family members who were patients of Reid.

Luke noticed that table next to which he sat had a pile of medical magazines on it. As he searched through them, he came across one on which Reid graced the cover. Luke smiled slightly and picked it up. Tattooed across Reid's chest, the headline read **Number one neurosurgeon performs miracle surgery**.

_How this must have fed his ego. _Luke smiled at the thought. He flipped open the magazine and began reading the article. As he was coming to the end, Luke heard a voice and his head snapped up.

"Mr. Harper. Mrs. Harper." Reid had come to talk to his patient's family.

"Dr. Oliver!" said the nervous, harried woman whom Reid had addressed. "How's Julie?"

"She's in recovery. She made it through the surgery fine. I was able to remove the tumor. There shouldn't be any brain damage, but we will have to wait until she wakes up just to make sure," Reid said. He had not noticed Luke who was staring at him, smiling.

"Oh!" the woman exclaimed. In her happiness, she pounced on Reid and embraced him very tightly. "Thank you. Thank you for saving my daughter."

Reid patted the woman awkwardly on the back, but Luke noticed that there was a slight smile on his face as he pulled away.

"Can we see her?" the man asked. Reid nodded and summoned a nurse.

"Carmen, please take Mr. and Mrs. Harper to recovery to see their daughter," Reid said. Luke registered the kindness with which Reid treated both the parents of his patient and the nurse.

When Carmen and Mr. and Mrs. Harper had left the room, only the man and Luke were left. Reid, who moved to leave the waiting area, had still not realized that Luke was there, so Luke stood up and said, "Reid."

Reid stopped dead in his tracks and then turned around.

"Hi," Luke said, smiling and walking over to him.

Reid stared at him blankly for a few seconds and then said, "Mr. Snyder. Have you come here to kidnap me again? Because this time I'm not going to give in to your antics." He turned around and went into the hallway. Luke followed.

"No. I'm not here to kidnap you. I just came to see how you were doing." Reid closed in eyes and clenched his teeth, but his back was to Luke who saw nothing.

"You took your corporate jet just to see how I am after three years? Well, I'm perfectly fine, Mr. Snyder. You've seen me. Are you satisfied? Will you let me get back to work? I have patients waiting for me," Reid said brusquely.

Luke furrowed his brow. "Actually, I'm here with Noah." Luke hesitated. "He has a film festival."

"Well, isn't that good for him."

"I was thinking that maybe we could talk," Luke said, following Reid who had walked away towards his office.

"I'm kind of busy at the moment," Reid said, pushing open the door.

"Well, we'll be here for a week. And Noah's going to be busy with the festival. Maybe we could get something to eat sometime and catch up?"

"I don't do catch up. Catching up is for sentimental fools and mentally unstable housewives. As you can see, I am alive and well. That's all you need to know," Reid said.

Luke glared at him. "Fine. I just thought it would be nice to hear what you've been doing since you left Oakdale," Luke said, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Why do you care?" Reid asked unceremoniously.

"Because the last time I saw you, you pretended that you were fine, but I knew you weren't. And then a week later you came back here. I wanted to know how'd you been since then. But I can see you obviously have no desire to do that. So I'll just go," Luke said, turning around and going back into the hallway.

It was only a few seconds before Reid followed him and said, "Tomorrow at noon at Local."

Luke turned around and smiled at Reid. "See you then." And he left.


	4. Chapter 4

The next day, after Noah had left for the preparations before the first day of the festival, Luke got ready for his lunch with Reid. Seeing Reid the previous day at the hospital had brought to Luke a happiness and giddiness that he couldn't explain and that he hadn't felt in a long time. Until he had come face to face with Reid, he hadn't completely realized just how much he had missed the doctor over the years. Their exchange of snarky comments and their bickering had always intrigued and enamored Luke who, upon thinking of their brief but wonderful relationship, realized how much their back-and-forth verbal matches had made being with Reid so exciting. He also came to realize just how sorely he missed that kind of excitement in his relationship with Noah.

At 11:30 Luke left their hotel room and took a taxi to Local, the restaurant where Reid had said to meet him. Despite leaving a half hour early, Luke got to the restaurant only five minutes early.

When he entered the restaurant, Luke saw that Reid was already there, sitting at a table waiting for him. Luke smiled. _He must have wanted to talk to me more than he let on. He hates getting places early._ Enthusiastic about this lunch, Luke made his way to the table.

"Hi," Luke said, sitting down. "Is traffic always this bad here?"

"Yes," Reid said shortly. "I must say, one of the few graces of Oakhell was that I could walk everywhere and get to places on time."

Luke smiled. "So how've you been, Reid?" Luke asked once they had ordered.

Reid looked at Luke for a minute before answering. "I've been okay," he said slowly but confidently. "Busy with the hospital."

"I saw that you performed a miracle surgery," Luke said. "Not that I'm surprised. I'm sure that every surgery you perform successfully seems like a miracle to those lowly peons that surround you." Despite the years apart, Luke felt himself sinking back into the comfortableness of sarcastically boosting Reid's ego that he had had when they had been dating.

Reid's mouth twitched in his attempt not to smile. "How are you?" Reid asked as a humongous triple-decker hamburger was placed in front of him and a regular one in front of Luke.

"I'm good," Luke said, as Reid immediately bit into his food. "I'm still working at the Foundation and my mom is still as annoying as ever."

"Still making you go to those stuffy black-tie affairs?" Reid asked through a mouthful of beef.

"Yep. Lots of parties you wouldn't like," Luke said, smiling slightly.

"Does Noah like them?" Reid asked, almost absentmindedly. Luke's face fell and his body tensed.

"Sort of. More than you," Luke said slowly. "But it was a lot more fun seeing you there. So uncomfortable and itching to leave the moment we got there."

Luke's kind words were unbearable to Reid who said bluntly, "Why did you want to talk to me? Was it just because Noah's too busy with his movies to care about you."

Luke was taken aback. "I wanted to talk because I wanted to see how you were doing."

"I'm not a fragile piece of chinaware, Luke. You didn't break me," Reid said, getting mean now.

"I didn't say you were fragile," Luke said, getting angry. But he relished in the fire he felt inside him at the argument brewing between them. It was a passion that was missing between him and Noah. "I just…you were once a major part of my life and like any normal person would do, I wanted to know what you'd been doing since I last saw you."

Reid heard the hurt in Luke's voice and it softened him. "I'm fine, like I said before."

The ends of Luke's mouth twitched in a shadow of a smile. "Have you been seeing anyone?" It was the question Luke most wanted answered.

Reid stared at Luke for a minute and then said, "Here or there." But his voice sounded strange. "Nothing that lasted too long."

"Oh. I'm sorry," Luke said, though some tiny part of him was glad. "I saw the way you were with that girl's parents. It was very compassionate. I'm glad you didn't lose that human side of you I worked so hard to bring out." Luke smirked.

"Yeah. Well, what can I say? It feels nice sometimes," Reid said, as the check was placed on the table.

Before Reid could even lift his hand to take it, Luke grabbed it. "I'm paying."

"You don't have to –" Reid said.

"I know. I want to," Luke said, as Reid's beeper went off.

Luke smiled at the familiar sound. "I missed that," he said softly without thinking.

Reid's heart constricted, but he said nothing other than, "I have to go." Reid stood up and grabbed his jacket. Before he left, he said, "Thanks for the lunch, Luke. It was good to see you." He left.

Luke paid the bill and went back to the hotel. Once he was back in the room, Luke sat down on one of the chairs and buried his head in his hands. Today's lunch had felt so natural, like getting back on a bike after years of not riding one. It had also brought to him a feeling of peacefulness and tranquility he hadn't felt since he had gotten back together with Noah.

"Because I still feel like I have to fight to stand next to him. It doesn't come easily like with Reid," Luke said aloud to himself.

And suddenly everything was clear as crystal to Luke.


	5. Chapter 5

Four hours later, Reid entered his apartment. Between his lunch with Luke and two emergency surgeries afterwards, he was exhausted and starving. He dropped his keys and his medical bag on the table that sat just behind the door, went into the kitchen, and started making himself an enormous sandwich.

_I wanted to see how you were doing…I'm glad you didn't lose that human side of you…_

Luke's words resounded in Reid's head as he ate his dinner. Why the hell had he ever agreed to meet the younger man for lunch?

"What a stupid thing to do," Reid mumbled, closing his eyes and shaking his head.

When he had finished his food and put the dishes in the sink, Reid went over to his computer and turned it on. He needed to talk to someone desperately and he knew who that person needed to be. As soon as his computer had warmed up, Reid logged on to Skype and hoped beyond hope that Katie Snyder was on hers.

He sighed in relief as he saw her name and immediately connected to her.

"Reid! Hi," Katie said, through the screen, surprised to see her friend. Despite the years that Reid had been gone from Oakdale, the former roommates had remained best friends and kept in touch almost daily.

"Katie, thank goodness you're on," Reid said.

"Why? What's going on?" Katie asked, concerned.

"Luke's here," Reid said, a hint of panic in his voice.

"What do you mean? He's in your apartment? Then why are you talking to me?"

"No. He's not in my apartment, Katie. He's in Dallas."

"Why?"

"He's here with Noah for a film festival," Reid said, betraying his hurt in his voice. A shadow crossed the woman's face.

"How did you know that?" Katie asked, furrowing her brows.

"He came and found me at the hospital."

"He sought you out?" Katie said, interest clear in her voice.

Reid's eyes narrowed at the sound of his friend's voice. "Yes. Why?"

"Well. That's good. He wanted to see you," Katie said, smiling.

"We had lunch today," Reid blurted out. He couldn't hold it in any longer.

"You WHAT?" Katie said, excited. "Why didn't you say that sooner? Did you ask him or did he ask you?"

"He asked me," Reid said. Katie broke into a huge smile.

"What?" Reid asked, confused at why Katie was smiling.

"He still likes you," Katie said. Reid frowned. "Why are you glaring at me?"

"You know why I'm glaring at you," Reid said.

"Why? Because I tell you that the man you've remained in love with and pined for for the last three years still likes you?" Katie asked, raising an eyebrow.

Reid opened his mouth to speak but closed it again without saying anything. Instead, he clenched his teeth and ran his fingers through his hair.

"How was the lunch?" Katie asked, seeing that her friend was distressed.

"Painful," Reid said. He couldn't lie and say it was fun; Katie could read him like a book.

"Why?" Katie asked, sadness in her voice.

"Because he was there. And he was kind. And it was like we had never been apart," Reid said, his voice cracking uncharacteristically. "He had no right to do that!" Reid said loudly and angrily.

"To do what?" Katie asked, confused, but happy at the emotion her friend was showing.

"To come down here after all these years, after _he_ dumped_ me_, and find me and make me feel all over again everything I've worked so hard to stop feeling." Reid was near hysterics now. All the feelings he had kept bottled up inside of him over the last three years came spilling out.

"Reid! Relax," Katie said, though she relished the fact that the doctor was reacting from his heart. "You're having an anxiety attack. That's only going to make things worse."

At her words, Reid had a fleeting memory from long ago of having been in an elevator with Luke the last time he had had an anxiety attack. Immediately, he thought of a brain and his breathing eased. "I'm sorry. I haven't lost control like that in a long time."

"It's okay. You haven't seen Luke in three years. Your emotions are bound to be out of whack." Katie smiled at him. "Do you feel better?"

"No," Reid said. "A little. Thanks for the talk, Katie." Just then, his doorbell rang. "Someone's at the door. I have to go."

"Okay. Call me, if you need to talk some more."

Reid nodded, logged off and went to the door. He opened it and found himself face-to-face with Luke.


	6. Chapter 6

After thinking about his lunch with Reid and how much he had missed the easiness of being with the doctor, Luke sat in his hotel room and came to the conclusion that his choosing to return to Noah had simply been out of fear and a need for something safe. Being with Noah had been all he had ever known and he had been afraid to give up his dream of spending a lifetime with him.

"My God, how stupid I was," Luke said to himself as he paced back-and-forth in front of the bed. "Three years I've been with Noah and I've never realized how unhappy I was. Not really unhappy. Just how much happier I was with Reid. Argh!" Luke fell backwards onto the bed in exasperation. "What have I done?"

Just then, the door opened and Noah walked in, carrying a bunch of packets and fliers from the festival.

"Hi," Noah said, putting the papers on the counter.

"Hi," Luke said, sitting up. "Are you all registered and ready to start showing your film?" Luke asked, trying to ease into the conversation he knew he had to have with Noah.

"Yep. The first showing is tonight at eight." Noah sat down on the bed next to Luke. "We can get something to eat in a couple hours and then head over."

A shadow crossed Luke's face. _Looks like I can't put this off. It's now or never._

"What?" Noah asked.

Luke took Noah's hand in his. "We need to talk."

"Okay," Noah said, shifting slightly on the bed so that he was facing Luke.

"Yesterday, while you were registering, I went to the hospital. To find Reid," Luke said. The little smile that Noah had been wearing faded.

"Why?"

"Because I wanted to see how he was doing," Luke said, his voice inflected to say that this was the most obvious thing in the world. "But there's more." Luke hesitated. "I had lunch with him today."

"You had lunch with him?" Noah asked, taking his hand out of Luke's.

"Yes."

"I thought we said we weren't going to meet up with him?" Noah asked, getting off the bed and walking over to the window.

"I never said that," Luke said angrily and forcefully. "You couldn't really have expected me to come here and not search him out."

"Yeah, I could. It's been three years. I thought that you wouldn't care," Noah said.

"Really? Is that the kind of person you think I am?" Luke asked, standing up and knowing more than ever that this decision was the right one. "That because it's been three years, I wouldn't care any more about the man whose heart I broke?" How poorly Noah knew him.

"Yes."

"Why? Why wouldn't I care?" Luke asked. "Don't you ever wonder how Richard's doing?"

"Not really. No," Noah said, sitting down in one of the chairs.

"Wow. I never realized how cold-hearted you are, Noah," Luke said, frowning. "I'm really glad we had this conversation. It makes my decision so much easier."

"What decision?" Noah asked.

Luke had not wanted to break things off with Noah like this. But he was left no choice. "To go back to Reid."

"You're going back to him?" Noah repeated quietly, hurt now replacing anger.

"Yes," Luke said, sitting back down on the bed.

"When did you decide this?"

"After lunch."

"Why?"

Luke got off the bed and walked over to the other chair. He again took Noah's hand in his. "You were my first real love, Noah. And what we had was beautiful and wonderful. Something I wouldn't trade for anything."

"But?"

"But our time is passed. It has been for a long time."

"What about the last three years?"

"I was settling. I realize that now. When had to choose between you and Reid, you were all I had known. A life with you had been all I had wanted for a long time. And then I had a relationship with Reid and it scared me. It scared me because there was this person who wasn't you who I was happy with and who I could see myself spending the rest of my life with. And that terrified me because I knew my feelings for you had changed. But I didn't want to admit that. So I chose you. I made the safe decision. But that doesn't mean the last three years weren't great. Because they were. I just wasn't truly happy, Noah. I'm sorry. But I wasn't."

"You never seemed unhappy," Noah said.

"I know. And I wasn't. I was just…not as happy as I could have been. This isn't something I first realized today, Noah. I've thought about this a lot over the years. How things were with Reid and how different things are with you. With Reid things are new and exciting –"

"Are you saying I'm boring?" Noah asked, angry again.

"No. It's just…we don't challenge each other the way Reid and I do. You and I don't make each other be better people, more mature. The fire we bring out in each other just…just doesn't exist between you and me. At least, not anymore. I'm truly sorry," Luke said sadly. He didn't know how else to explain why he was happier with Reid than with Noah.

"So what now?" Noah asked.

"I hope we can still be friends," Luke said.

"I need some time," Noah said.

Luke nodded. "I understand. I'll pack up and get my own room," Luke said, standing up, going to the closet, and getting his suitcase.

As Luke opened the door to leave, Noah said, "Luke, I hope you're happy with Reid. And I'm sorry I couldn't be that person for you. And if you still want to come to festival, you're welcome to come."

Luke smiled slightly and said, "Thank you. I hope you can forgive me and find someone who will make you happy, too. And I really do hope we can still be friends and keep in touch."

Noah smiled slightly, too, and nodded.

Luke gave Noah a sad look and left.

When he had finally managed to get to the service desk, Luke was able to secure himself another room, ironically – or humorously – the same room in which he had stayed when he had come to Dallas with Reid so many years ago.

Smiling, Luke opened the door and walked inside. It hadn't changed at all since the last time he had been there. He quickly recalled his first kiss with Reid and then began to unpack his clothes and put them in drawers, though he hoped that he would be back here soon to pack up and move them permanently into Reid's place.

By the time he had finished putting all his things away, it was nearly dinner time and Luke realized how hungry he was. He ordered a grilled cheese from room service and ate it quickly when it came fifteen minutes later. His hunger satisfied, Luke grabbed his jacket and set out to Reid's apartment of which he remembered the location from when they were in the city together.

Outside the hotel, Luke hailed a taxi and sat anxiously through the awful Dallas traffic until they finally reached the building. He hurriedly paid the driver and entered the building. Once inside, he earnestly poked the UP button and the button for Reid's floor and nearly jumped out of his skin whenever the elevator stopped to let someone in or out. After what seemed like an eternity, the doors opened on Reid's floor and Luke nearly ran out and down the hall to Reid's apartment. Hoping beyond hope that Reid was not still at the hospital, Luke rang the doorbell.

A minute later, Luke sighed in relief as the door opened and he was face-to-face with Reid.


	7. Chapter 7

Luke and Reid stared at each for a few seconds and then Luke broke into an enormous grin.

"Hi!" Luke said enthusiastically.

Reid blinked at him, not quite sure if Luke was an apparition or not.

"Can I come in?" Luke asked.

Reid stepped aside, let Luke enter, and closed the door behind him. He stood stock still just staring at Luke.

After a few seconds he came to his senses and said, "What are you doing here?"

"To see you. What else?"

"You already saw me. You eased your conscience. There was no need to make a house call," Reid said.

Luke smiled at the snarkiness he had missed so much.

"What?" Reid asked, irritated that Luke was smiling.

"I missed you," Luke said quietly.

"Excuse me?"

"I broke up with Noah," Luke said. There was no point in jumping around what he had come here to say. Reid remained staring at him, almost as if he were a zombie.

"I'm sorry," Reid said stiffly, but Luke knew that wasn't true. The subtle change in Reid's eyes when Luke had announced the split told him that.

Luke didn't acknowledge that he knew, however. Instead, he sat down on the couch and said, "Yeah. I realized that I just wasn't in love with him anymore and that I haven't been for a while. There was no spark or excitement left between us. It just felt stagnant and flat. I also realized that I don't feel the need to be a better person when I'm with him."

"So you were bored?" Reid asked, a slight jest in his voice.

"Sort of, yeah."

"Why are you telling me this?" Reid asked, finally moving from in front of the door to in front of Luke and crossing his arms over his chest.

"Because I wanted you to know," Luke said cryptically.

"Why?" Reid asked quietly, his heart beating a mile a minute.

"Because everything that was missing in my relationship with Noah was ever present in my relationship with you," Luke said, standing up.

"And you just realized this now," Reid asked, slight desperation in his voice.

"No. Not really. I've been thinking about it for a while." Luke slowly walked toward Reid, closing the gap between them.

"How long?" Reid whispered. "Because I've been here doing my nerdy science thing. Saving people's lives and doing nothing else. Yelling at people and being the best neurosurgeon in the country."

"Your babbling again," Luke said, practically laughing as his face came within inches of Reid's.

"I know. I still don't know what else to do," Reid mumbled.

Luke smiled at Reid's nerdiness and then lightly placed his lips on Reid's. Reid moaned, wrapped his arms around Luke's waist to pull him closer, and immediately deepened the kiss. It was a rough and frantic kiss because it had been sorely missed for the last three years. After what seemed like several sunlit days, the two men broke apart, both breathing very heavily.

"I love you, Reid. I never should have –" Luke started, but was cut off by Reid's lips attacking his. Luke responded hungrily as Reid hands found his shirt and started unbuttoning it.

Luke broke the contact. "Wait."

"What?" Reid asked, confused. "Please don't tell me you're going back to Noah."

"No. I just thought that we should go to the bedroom." Reid grinned from ear to ear, grabbed Luke's hand, and pulled him towards his bedroom.


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning rays of sunlight came through the window and gently illuminated the bed on which Reid and Luke were tangled up in each other, Reid's arm slung across Luke's waist, holding him close as if he were afraid the younger man would vanish if he let go. The sun hit Reid's face and the doctor blinked as he opened his eyes.

He lifted his head slightly off the pillow and smiled at the blonde man who was sleeping next to him. It had been a long since he had felt this peaceful and happy. It was a wonderful feeling to have him back in his bed.

Reid gently kissed the nape of Luke's neck. Luke smiled faintly and opened his eyes. The blonde shifted in Reid's arms so that he could turn around and face the older man.

"Good morning," Reid said, smiling.

"Hi," Luke said, smiling completely and stretching his neck up to kiss Reid on the lips. "Do you have work today?"

"I just happen to be off today," Reid said, putting his head back down on the pillow.

"Good," Luke said, snuggling up to Reid, placing his head in the crook of Reid's neck, and his arm around Reid's waist. "Let's never move."

"Why did it take you three years to come find me?" Reid asked, gently running his fingers up and down Luke's arm.

Luke's mouth twitched. "I don't know. I guess…I guess I thought that the longer I went, the more I would be able to convince myself that I had made the right choice. That was stupid. The longer I went, the more I couldn't stop thinking about you and what we had together. Especially what we could have had."

"Would you have sought me out if you hadn't come here for the festival?" Reid asked.

Luke looked at Reid. "Probably not," Luke answered honestly. Reid frowned. "But I'm incredibly glad that we did come here," Luke said, assuring Reid that he was here to stay. "It's like it was fate."

"Fate?" Reid asked skeptically. "Fate is for insecure fools who can't make up their minds about things."

"So I'm an insecure fool?" Luke asked, but he smiled at the brash life lessons that he had missed so much.

Reid smirked and said, "No…not completely. You at least came to your senses. Better late than never."

Luke shook his head and repositioned himself so that it rested on the doctor's chest.

"You know, I wasn't sure you'd be here waiting," Luke said.

Reid looked down at Luke. "I never stopped loving you, Luke. I thought that when I came back here after you left me that I would be able to box up whatever feelings I had for you and go on with my life as if they had never existed or were some distant memory. I realized all too soon that what I felt for you was too real and too deep to ever go away."

Luke lightly brushed his lips against Reid's. "I feel like an idiot. I stayed with Noah for three years when I knew in the deepest parts of my heart that the one I really, truly loved was you. And I hurt you in the process. But…" Luke faltered.

"But what?"

"But…but I'm here to stay. If you want me to," Luke said, looking at Reid.

Reid did not respond but kissed Luke instead. "I want you with me always."

Luke smiled. "Well, now that that's cleared up, I'm starving." He sat up, as did Reid.

"Lucky for you, I've spent many years being hungry. So I know how to make breakfast. But you already knew that," Reid said with a cheeky grin, getting out of bed and throwing on a pair of Harvard sweat pants. Luke chuckled as Reid left the room.

Luke jumped out of bed, found a pair of scrub bottoms that Reid had left lying on a chair, and slipped into them, since he did not want to put on his jeans this early in the morning when he wasn't going anywhere. _Oh, how I've missed these_, Luke thought to himself as he left the bedroom.

When Luke entered the kitchen he found Reid standing over the stove making scrambled eggs and delicious smelling bacon. Luke smiled. How much he had craved this kind of morning with Noah. Luke walked over to Reid and wrapped his arms around the doctor's waist.

"That smells delicious," Luke said, kissing Reid's neck.

"And it should taste delicious too," Reid said, taking the pan off the stove and walking over to the table. He scooped some eggs and bacon onto each of two plates.

"From what I remember, it will be," Luke said, picking up his fork and immediately shoveling eggs into his mouth. "Mmmm." They were wonderful. "Delicious, as I knew they would be." Reid grinned through his mouthful of eggs and bacon.

"Thank you for the breakfast," Luke said, shifting his chair closer to Reid and kissing him.

"You don't need to thank me," Reid said. "You'd do it for me."

"Of course. But after the way I treated you, you have no reason to be this nice to me."

Reid stroked Luke's cheek. "I couldn't be mean to you if I tried. Not intentionally, anyway. Rude, maybe. But not mean or cruel."

"I love you," Luke said.

"I love you, too," Reid said, kissing Luke. "Okay. Enough mushy, feelings talk. What do you want to do today?"

Luke smiled mischievously as his eyes twinkled. He said, "I have a few ideas" and he crushed his lips against Reid's.


	9. Chapter 9

Although they knew full well that Luke had only planned on staying in Dallas for the week as planned when he had come down with Noah, neither Luke nor Reid had addressed the issue as to what would happen when that week had ended. As a result, the rest of the week went by rather quickly, too quickly for the likings of either Luke or Reid. Despite spending all their time together, whether it was at the hospital, Reid's apartment, or generally around Dallas, the two men felt that the week had not been long enough to make up for the three years that they had been apart.

And, so, when the night before Luke was set to return to Oakdale came around, there was a large, dark cloud looming over the couple as they sat on Reid's couch, Luke curled up, his head resting on Reid's shoulder with Reid's arm around Luke. They were watching the Houston Astros game – they were losing, of course – and both men were very quiet. When, finally, Luke could stand the silence no longer, he said, "I'm supposed to go home tomorrow."

"I know," Reid said quietly. There was sadness in his voice and he instinctively held Luke a little tighter.

Luke unfolded his legs, swung them over the side of the couch, and looked at Reid. "Don't you want me to stay?"

"Of course I do," Reid said, more angrily than he had intended. Luke frowned. He was

not going to be the one to suggest he move in. That had to be Reid.

"So?"

"So what?" Reid said, still watching the game.

"How do you plan on getting me to not get on that plane in the morning?"

"I thought I'd blackmail and kidnap you," Reid said, trying very hard not to smile.

Luke snorted. "Seriously, Reid. What are you going to do to get me to stay?"

Reid looked at Luke. "What do you want me to say?"

"I want you to give me a reason to stay in Dallas. I spent too many years sticking around with Noah because it's what I wanted. I need to know that you want me around," Luke said.

"You know I do," Reid said. He kissed Luke.

"Well then?"

Reid stared at Luke, his fingers entwined in the younger man's hair. "Move in with me." He had not a revelation or epiphany before he said it; it was simply the natural thing to do.

Luke smiled. "Of course, you idiot," and Luke kissed him.

"What about Oakdale?"

"Eh. It's time I got out of that dump anyway," Luke said, the ends of his mouth twitching.

"What will your parents say?" Reid asked, though he hardly cared.

"Let's find out," Luke said, pulling out his cell phone, dialing his home number, and putting it on speakerphone.

"Hi, Luke," came a woman's voice on the other end.

"Hi, Mom," Luke said.

"Getting ready to come home tomorrow?" Luke and Reid exchanged looks.

"Not exactly."

"What do you mean? Does Noah need to stay longer than he thought?"

"I wouldn't know," Luke said tentatively while suppressing a laugh.

"Huh?" his mother asked, confused.

"I'm not with Noah. I haven't been with him all week," Luke said in a rush.

"What do you mean you haven't been with Noah? Didn't you go down to Dallas with him?"

"I did," Luke said cautiously. "But I broke up with him the next day."

"You did what?" Lily said loudly. "Why?"

"Because I'm not in love with him anymore. I haven't been in love with him for three years. I really came down here to find Reid." Luke grimaced in anticipation of his mother's response.

"Dr. Oliver?" Lily said, not bothering to hide the disgust in her voice. Reid seemed unfazed.

Luke furrowed his brows. "Yes, Mom. I broke up with Noah for Dr. Oliver. And I'm not changing my mind."

"But what about Noah?" Lily said, sounding close to tears.

"He'll be fine," Luke said bluntly.

"But he's the love of your life," Lily whined.

"No he's not," Luke said, angry now. "Reid is. I knew that when I chose Noah three years ago and I know it now. And I'm staying down here with Reid." He said the last part quickly.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm moving in with Reid." Luke scrunched up his face in a way that made Reid grin like a fool.

"That's an adorable face," Reid whispered into Luke's ear. Luke silently chuckled.

"Holden!" Lily shouted on the other end of the phone. Luke's mouth formed an O.

"What, Lily?" Luke heard his father say.

"Luke is on the phone. He says he left Noah and he's moving in with Dr. Oliver."

"Luke?" Holden said.

"Hi, Dad."

"Is that true?"

"Yep," Luke said.

"Is this what you want?"

"Yep."

There was a short silence. Then Holden said, "Would you like us to get Lucinda to send you your stuff?" Lily gasped quite audibly.

Luke grinned. The battle had been won. "That would be wonderful. If you could get it out of the apartment before Noah gets back tomorrow that would be best. He knows I'm with Reid, but still…" Luke trailed off.

"I'll call Lucinda right now. She'll be happy. She's always like Reid." Luke smiled at his boyfriend.

"Mom?" Luke said quietly.

"Well, I guess if this is what you want, then I have to be happy for you," Lily said grudgingly. "But you really hurt Noah."

"Mom, Noah will get over it. He probably already has," Luke said gently. He never could quite understand his mother's insistence on him being with Noah.

"I expect to hear from you three times a day," Lily said, now motherly and sad. "I'm not sure I can handle you being so far away from me."

"I promise we'll talk. And if you need me, I'm only a plane ride away."

"Yeah."

"Thanks, Mom," Luke said. "I love you."

"I love you, too, baby," Lily said before hanging up.

Luke burst into laughter. "That wasn't so bad."

"You're mom doesn't like me very much, does she?" Reid said, relaxing back onto the couch, his arm around Luke again.

"No, she does. It's just…you're not Noah. She's always been intent on having me with Noah. I think she's in love him," Luke said, chuckling slightly.

"That's…interesting," Reid said, turning off the TV once the Astros had made their last out.

"It'd make for some awkward family gatherings," Luke said. Reid smiled slightly.

"Don't you have things at the hotel?" Reid asked.

"Yeah, I do. But I'll get them tomorrow while you're at the hospital," Luke said, snuggling closer to Reid.

Just then Reid's computer dinged. Reid groaned but got up and turned it on anyway. It was Katie on Skype.

"Reid! Luke!"

"Hi, Katie," Luke said, amused.

"I saw Holden. He told me the good news."

"I'm not even in Oakhell anymore and everyone still knows my personal business," Reid said, walking over to the fridge.

"Didn't I tell you he'd come back to you?" Katie said.

"You said no such thing because I wouldn't be caught dead talking about my feelings," Reid said, making himself one of his sandwiches.

Luke chuckled and shook his head in exasperation.

"Oh. Right. Sorry," Katie said, smiling. "Well, anyway, I'm very happy for you two."

"Thanks, Katie," Luke said, because Reid's mouth was stuffed with food. "Tell Jacob we say 'hi'."

"I will," Katie said and she signed off.

"So you were talking to Katie about your feelings?" Luke said, smirking.

Reid shook his head vehemently.

"You shouldn't deny it, Reid," Luke said, seductively sauntering over to the table.

"Why?" Reid said, having finished his sandwich.

"It's kinda sexy," Luke said, grabbing Reid's hand and pulling him out of the chair.

"What is?"

"Talking about emotions," Luke said.

"Really?" Reid said skeptically.

"Yeah. It's a real turn-on," Luke said, inching closer, still holding Reid's hand.

"In that case…you should know that I'm really…glad you decided to move in…with me," Reid stuttered, breathing heavily as Luke's face was barely an inch from his own.

Luke smiled and kissed Reid like there was no tomorrow.


	10. Chapter 10

One Year Later

Luke and Reid stood together at an altar in Luther's Corner Church. Despite living in Dallas, they thought it best that they get married in Oakdale; it was easier than asking everyone to travel to Texas, and Luke had wanted to exchange vows in the town in which he had grown up and the town in which they had first met.

The pews behind the altar were full of their family and friends. In the front row, Katie Snyder was beaming, ecstatic that she had managed to match-make her best friend and Luke without really trying. Next to her sat Holden and Lily Snyder, who was crying over the fact that her baby was getting married and that it wasn't to Noah. The priest stood behind a podium that faced out into the church.

"Welcome. It is my honor to preside over this historic wedding," Father Jones said. "Luke, Reid, as you set out on your journey into marriage, remember that love is a precious and beautiful thing. Cherish and honor it. And now, your vows."

Luke and Reid turned to face each other.

"Luke, it's no secret that when you first dragged me here I wasn't the nicest person to you. And, I think it's safe to say that you annoyed the hell out of me whenever you were around. You got under my skin immediately, from the second or third time I laid eyes on you. I tried endlessly to stay away, but I never could manage it. You always seemed to be around. No matter how rude or mean to you I was, you were nice to me anyway. You helped me to keep my medical license and you helped me to build my neurology wing at Memorial. You could have said no, but you didn't. And I could no longer fight the feelings I had for you. I had to give in. You have given me something to live for other than my job and I love you for that. I love you more than I have ever loved anything in the world. I could never love anyone or anything as much as I love you. You are my whole world, Luke, and I am so happy to be standing here today with you," Reid said, smiling.

"Reid, I spent two and a half years in love with someone who most of the time didn't seem to love and appreciate me. But, still, I did everything I could to try and make him happy, no matter how many times things went wrong and he pushed me away. The final straw with him was when I blackmailed and kidnapped you into coming here so that he wouldn't have to be blind for the rest of his life. But, even that wasn't good enough for him. And then there was you. You were rude and sarcastic and mean, but you spoke the truth so many times I couldn't ignore it. It was refreshing to have someone so blunt and open about their feelings tell me that they like me. You were constantly challenging me and making me a better man. And for that, I fell in love with you. I never knew what it was like to truly love and be truly loved in return until I met you. I love you, Reid, with my whole heart and soul, and I am so happy and honored to be standing up here with you today – even if it is four years later than it should have been," Luke said, returning Reid's smile and chuckling.

"The rings, please," Father Jones said. Luke's little brother Ethan walked up to Luke and Reid with a pillow bearing two solid gold rings.

"Luke, with this ring, I pledge to eternally love and cherish you," Reid repeated after the Father and placed the ring on Luke's finger.

"Reid, with this ring, I pledge to eternally love and cherish you," Luke repeated after the Father and placed the ring on Reid's finger.

"It is my duty, honor, and pleasure to now pronounce you married," Father Jones said.

Luke and Reid flashed matching smiles and kissed like they had never kissed before as the church erupted in applause.


End file.
